We want to celebrate and find out more about the characters driving the renaissance of the London gallery scene, and what better way than to resurrect our THAT’s Interesting feature.
Last time we had Nicolas Sorbac of Nisoproject, this time we have writer, curator, historian and gallery manager Anna Moss from Liliya Art Gallery.
I got my first job in the art world working at the Whitechapel Gallery, where I was exposed not only to a fantastic roster of exhibitions under the directorship of Iwona Blazwick but to colleagues who were studying at London art schools who are now among my closest friends. I did a few internships in galleries or for dealers and also worked for Sotheby’s – this is my first step into the emerging scene, and I am beyond grateful to be entrusted with facilitating artists’ ideas and work.
I’m helping to run Liliya Art Gallery focussing on the gallery’s concept-driven exhibitions. At the moment, we have a group show ‘It’s Really Like that’ featuring Will Harman, Jen Roper, Paula Parole, and Bliss Coulthard. It’s a really fun, playful figurative exhibition that awkward, crude and comedic aspects of the everyday. At the same time, there’s a lot of introspection and reflection there, so I hope that visitors will be able to appreciate the humour as well as the emotive quality.
Some Art I’m interested in
I am particularly fixated with drawing and works on paper at the moment, a medium I think I had previously neglected. My show at the gallery in December featured two charcoal works on canvas by Cai Arfon Bellis, which I would liken to rave-infused Goya drawings. I was thrilled when he made the monumental Fuck Off and Dance purposefully the exhibition.
Whilst we’re on the topic of charcoal of course there’s the much-awaited Frank Auerbach at the Courtauld, and I also recently saw Luis Caballero’s drawings at Cecilia Brunson projects, the first time the Latin American artist has been exhibited in the UK, an important representation and acknowledgement of his work. The drawings are devastatingly brave and erotic, achieving a sensuousness I thought would only be possible in sculpture.
The Tagli have a brilliant online exhibition at the moment called Rise and Shine showcasing a really strong selection of emerging multidisciplinary artists.
Some Culture I’m interested in
For a general cultural fix in London, I think it’s hard to compete with Southbank Centre for their programme across their poetry library which has great resources and readings, or their live music, film screenings and discussions. Later in March, they have a series of events on Rave culture which I’m particularly looking forward to.
I’ve been re-reading a lot of Frank O’Hara’s poetry as well as snippets of his art criticism for the first time. I find it fascinating that he was both a curator and a poet and how these two facets of his life are inextricably linked. His criticism is just as metaphorical and allusory as his creative writing. I’m touched by his generosity of spirit, which feels so palpable in his writing; it seems like everybody was in love with him and the feeling was mutual.
Some Design I’m interested in
I love going to antique furniture shops: favourites include Morbleu on the Dulwich Road which is a real treasure trove and the Old Cinema in Chiswick is great too.
My dream bookcase is a Penguin Donkey, designed by Egon Riss in 1939.
It’s probably a bit predictable, but I find myself gravitating towards mid-century or space-age design and if it’s slightly garish that’s even better. Accounts I frequently stalk on Instagram for design include _dreamspaces, collectorwalls and perrier_giroire. On collectorwalls, I love seeing immense pairings of twentieth-century art in different interiors.
Some Style/ Fashion I’m interested in
I’m not sure if this counts as fashion or should have been in design, but I love the jewellery brand Alighieri. Founded by Rosh Mahtani, she hand-crafts these beautiful molten designs inspired by Dante’s Inferno. I’ve got one small necklace from them that I always wear but I’d love to expand the collection.
I’m really a big appreciator of fashion as an art form and nobody did this like Alexander McQueen, in his runway shows, historical inspiration and research, impeccable tailoring – everything. I saw the Savage Beauty exhibition at the V&A years and years ago and it’s permanently etched into my memory seeing the craftsmanship and silhouettes in person.
Some Tech I’m interested in
I’m probably the worst person to ask about tech as I prefer to write everything down by hand. I just recently made the switch from iPhone to Android with a Pixel, though, and I don’t think I miss an iPhone much, which I never thought I’d say.
Some Music I’m interested in
Broadly speaking, I mainly listen to post-punk and electronic music genres. All the Artificial Intelligence albums are great starting points for electronic music. I also enjoy a lot of Burial and Orbital. A post-punk band that I think is a bit overlooked is The Sound: their album From the Lion’s mouth is utterly morbid, bordering on hellish, and a complete work of art.
Nick Cave is one of my favourite living musicians, his output is just prolific: it’s hard to pick a favourite album of his, but I think I’d go with Lyre of Orpheus/Abattoir Blues.
Other artists or musicians that are usually on my heavy rotation include Kate Bush, Fiona Apple, the Cocteau Twins.
A museum and gallery show recommendation –
A museum show that I’m looking forward to is William Blake’s Universe in March at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge: it’s a stellar line-up of not just his work but the German Romantics.
I am passing the baton onto Louis from Studio Chapple, part of Enclave Projects in Deptford. Louis has a solo show with Bill Daggs (who featured in Liliya’s Abstracting Rhythms Exhibition) in March. I’m really happy at the prospect of galleries breaking down the hierarchies between different art forms and being interdisciplinary in the true sense of the word.
